Row over Kerala municipality's Ramadan fasting time siren

A practice being followed by a municipality in the Kottayam district of Kerala to sound a siren on evenings during Ramadan to alert the Muslim believers of the time to end fasting has triggered a row.

Some Christian and Hindu outfits have raised objections against it and petitions were also moved at the Kerala High Court against the practice of the Changanassery municipality. But the municipality authorities are justifying that it is a practice being followed over the last many years.

The municipal secretary issued an order the other day deputing a contingent worker to sound the evening siren. The order was issued as per a request of a local Muslim Jama-ath secretary.

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Some Christian and Hindu outfits raised objections maintaining that Ramadan fasting was neither a national festival nor a state festival, but only a religious practice by Muslims. Hence a constitutional institution should not be used for it.

While the municipal chairperson and secretary were not available for comments, Congress councillor Raju Chacko said that it was a practice being followed over the last few decades on the basis of a decision of the municipal council. "The decision to sound the siren was taken by the council at least 40 years back as many people did not have wrist watches during those days. Since then the practice is being followed, except for a few years when the siren was defunct. Last year also the siren was sounded. Now an unnecessary controversy is being made by vested interest groups," he said.

The matter was raised by the council meeting on Tuesday. While BJP councillors flayed that the decision was taken without discussion in the council, the Congress and CPM backed the practice to sound the siren.